I Believe in Santa Claus!
by EternallyDrowning
Summary: Santa has been missing for over 80 years. Though his reindeer look for him, they are loosing hope. When they finally find him he doesn't know who he is, and doesn't believe them. It's all up to Dancer to show him the true power of Christmas! GaaraxSakura
1. The Search

**Hello everyone! Merry Christmas! Happy Hanukkah! Happy Holidays! For these festive times (God, I sound like a commercial…) I have decided to write a story! (you can groan if you want)**

**Since this story is going to be little confusing because I will be referring to the characters with multiple names I am just going to spell out who is who.**

_**Dasher**_** is Sasuke, **_**Dancer**_** is Sakura, **_**Prancer**_** is Neji, **_**Vixen**_** is Ino, **_**Comet**_** is Shikamaru (wouldn't he be cute with antlers!) **_**Cupid**_** is Naruto, **_**Donner**_** is Yamato, and **_**Blitzen **_**is Kakashi**

**Also, when they say "D and B" they are referring to Donner and Blitzen.**

**To make it easier to understand, Naruto doesn't refer to them by their reindeer name, her refers to them by their human name. Kakashi will mostly refer to them by their human name, but he will reference their reindeer name when talking about their duties or during arguments and such. Neji refers to everyone by their reindeer name, and Sasuke uses the reindeer name to refer to himself, sometimes, and also when it insults the others (sorry if it's confusing) Everyone else just switches between their human and reindeer names.**

**SUMMARY: **_**Santa has been missing for over eighty years. The reindeer, who have been reincarnated, have been desperately looking for his reincarnated self. They have from the Harvest Moon until the Winter Solstice of each year to locate him and get him ready for his duties. But what if Santa doesn't believe what his reindeer are telling him? How will they ever convince him to fulfill his duties? Many of the reindeer are losing hope, but Dancer is determined to help him believe in the power of Christmas!**_

* * *

A black haired teenage boy stood in the doorway to her room, almost invisible in the shadows because of his dark attire. A black sweater with a low-cut triangle neck hung loosely off his form, revealing the pale skin of this chest. His jeans were worn and faded, but still retained their dark gray color. He looked stoic and serious, nothing warm about him at all. His eyes were cold and detached, and his pose was uninviting.

The person he was looking at had not noticed his presence; had not noticed, or had not cared. She stood by the large window looking out to the snowy paradise devotedly, searching for something, waiting for something, with every fiber of her being.

She was the youngest and most gentle out of everyone living in the large house by the woods. She was also the most innocent. She had not caused any violence, and had not participated in any of the small rivalries going on throughout the house. She had only looked out at the world through the reflective pains of glass windows and searched above in the open skies.

Her hair was a rose like shade, reflected in the light it almost looked like a soft pink flower, only now it was covered by a tan Newsboy hat slanted slightly to the side. Her eyes sparkled like a child's every time she saw the snow fall, and her soft pink lips were never the owners of any course words or foul language.

Today she had dressed in a short light brown skirt, her legs being covered by wool leggings of a creamlike color extending only an inch or two below the ruffled skirt. Her boots weren't necessarily made for winter, more for fashion than defense against the cold. Tanned Eskimo Uggs with a good three to four inch covering of faux fur at the top of each boot. They weren't long, only extending to just below her knee, but they had two stings attached to each one where a ball of faux fur hung. She had a long hide coat that hung loosely down to her knees. It could be tied with a belt as well as buttoned up, but she had just let it hang slack and open, revealing the pale creamy green scarf that wrapped around her neck and hung down her chest.

Bored, the black haired boy leaned his body against the doorframe, blowing a strand of hair covering his face away with a soft huff of breath.

The boy cleared his throat, slightly irritated that he had to be the one to tell her.

"Sakura, D and B have returned."

The girl tore her gaze away from the window, looking at him expectantly, her light red hair flying around her in a halo. Before even uttering a sound, she had sprinted past the stoic boy and out of the room, vanishing down the hall.

* * *

_They've returned! They've returned! They've returned!_ she thought excitedly as she scurried down the steps, barely focusing on her footwork in her speed, but considerate enough not to jump down the entire twenty step staircase in her frantic journey.

The sounds of talking and laughter filled her ears, and the scent of eggnog, spices of nutmeg and peppermint, and the rich scent of hot cocoa filled up her senses, all of it which made her adrenaline rush to an even higher height as she made her way closer to the kitchen, where the only door leading to the snowy wonderland of the outside world was located.

Her hands slammed against the family room doors, separating her from the reunion, and as soon as they were open enough to fit her small figure, she burst through them into the crowded room.

"Did you find him?" she demanded, breath heavy and ragged from her adrenaline rush. She was talking to the two oldest people in the room, almost glaring at them with her expectant eyes.

The room went silent.

A brunette haired man in his early thirties was the first to give way.

He caught her eye, only for a moment, and had to look away, a sad and solemn look on his face.

Sakura's eyes widened slightly, then looked even more desperately at the other man, the silver haired one.

His black winter scarf was wrapped around his face in such a way that you could only see up to his eyes, but his silver bangs hung so long that it covered an one of those eyes. This meant that you could not tell what he was thinking unless he told you.

"Please, Blitzen, tell me you at least found a _trace_ of him!"

He closed his one visible eye, and shook his head slowly from side to side.

Her heart sank, but before she could whimper the protests of her grief, Blitzen cut her off with his smooth nostalgic voice.

"We're still only able to move on the one fact we know. He is somewhere in this city, but no matter where we look we can't seem to catch a new trail of his scent. The city is too big and there are too many other scents mixing with his. We can sort through it all, but it will take longer. Don't worry, we'll find him, it's only a matter of time."

"That's just skepticism, you should know that Blitzen. You and Donner have been searching for him since the day he went missing over eighty years ago. I've been here only seven years, and even I can tell that it's hopeless."

Blitzen glared at the occupant with the attitude, the black haired teen that retrieved Sakura. "Then why are you still here, Sasuke." he snapped sharply, a snarl of ill-intent dripping into his voice.

"Ah, Dasher and Blitzen are going at it again. So troublesome…" came the tired voice of another dark brunette haired teen, a loud yawn making its way out of his mouth as he stretched in his station on one of the chairs by the table, his arms stretching lazily across its wooden surface. "Try to keep it down this time."

A small yet loud laugh made its way through the corner of the room. "Ha! Take a look at that! Even Shikamaru woke up because of your pointless arguing." a blonde haired loud mouth laughed. "Bets! Bets anybody! My money is on Kakashi!" he shrieked.

Blitzen and Sasuke just ignored him, again, for this was the usual kind of action he took during tense times like these.

"You are a selfish egotistic kid, Sasuke. If you don't wish to find him then hurry up and leave so that Dasher can come back and find him like he's supposed to. The world doesn't revolve around you."

Sasuke clenched his hands into fists at his sides. "I _am_ Dasher, Kakashi," he spat, disrespect obvious in his tone. "I'm free to think what I want when I want. Just because I've seen things for what they are doesn't mean that I'm not one of the eight!"

"Oh, I know that. You are one of the eight. _Sixth_ out of the eight! And I, the _first_, have been ordered by Master himself to keep all of you in line. Now, go to your room and think over that self-absorbed attitude of yours!"

The black haired Sasuke was about to voice a protest, but couldn't. Kakashi was, after all, correct. Blitzen had been put in charge and was the oldest and most experienced out of all the reindeer. He had never been reincarnated, meaning he had never lost hope or view of his duty. So, instead of arguing back against him, Sasuke merely shifted his weight to his left leg, and shoved his hands in the pockets of his white cut-off pants. "Hn." he said, as if that was what won him the argument, and casually started walking toward his room, as if that was what he had intended to do to begin with. After all, Dasher could never refuse an order sent by Blitzen. It was impossible.

After the awkward fight was over and dealt with, and Sasuke had left the room, the silver haired adult had begun striking up conversations with the few remaining people in the room. As soon as the fight had broken out, Donner, the brunette that had come with Blitzen, as well as Naruto had left to go into the living room to take a break from the loudness. The only people in the room were now Sakura, the lazy Shikamaru, and a pale eyed stoic boy named Neji.

"So, where's our lovely little blonde?" the silver haired Kakashi said happily, now that the stress of returning home was out of the way.

"Vixen went on a date." The pale eyed boy said. "She said they were going to a movie and that she would be back by tomorrow."

Kakashi sighed. "Again?"

Shikamaru yawned again. "That's Ino for you."

Not liking where the conversation was going, Sakura left the kitchen and made her way into the family room where the two others were located.

* * *

"So, Yamato, how was the trip through the city? How far did you go? Did you meet any girls? Did you get shot at!?" The loud blonde was asking impatiently.

The older brunette lifted his hands in order to try and quiet him down, but was still bombarded with question after question.

"Okay, Okay, I'll talk. I'll talk!" he laughed at the eagerness of his younger companion. "The trip was okay, just long. We traveled block after block, circled a few times when we thought the scent was strong, but ended up being misguided and had to go look somewhere else just to come back to the exact same spot. Kakashi and I stayed human. It would attract attention in a city, but it would also cause a liability. Hunters are getting more fearless. They've been shooting at deer in the park even, thinking no one will notice since it's so wooded, but we do. I'm not scaring you too much, am I, Naruto?"

The blonde swallowed nervously and tried to laugh it off, but it was obvious that he was a little bit afraid, after all, hunters were something to be feared.

After regaining his aloof composure, Naruto placed his folded hands behind his head and leaned back into the blue recliner chair. He stared at the ceiling for a while, the silence becoming heavier and heavier.

Sakura closed her eyes, a slight tiredness had come over her from her disappointing day.

"Hey, Yamato…" Naruto said finally, his eyes locked on the setting sun illuminating through the window by Sakura's nearly sleeping form.

"Hrm?" he answered absentmindedly.

"Do you think we'll ever find him?"

Yamato sighed, "I don't know."

"Wait a sec, you haven't been reincarnated either, just like Kakashi, but if you're doubting then shouldn't you have been born again, at least once?"

Yamato thought a bit, then answered. "Well, me and Blitzen have different points of view on the situation. He believes that it is our duty to look for our master, he once had the thought that this was a test to see how loyal we were, but that was a long time ago. I, on the other hand, think he'll come back on his own. He left of his own free will, he'll come back on his own free will. I think Kakashi only looks for him because he can't stand to be away from him. We're all connected to him after all, and he had been the closest to him since he was together with him the longest. That's a large part of his life that just went away."

Naruto blinked a bit, letting it all sink in.

"Wait a minute, you referred to Blitzen as Kakashi… You mean there was a difference between the way Blitzen is now than the way he was then?" he asked confused.

Yamato let out a loud laugh. "You could say that. Blitzen has become more concerned about all of us, he thinks of us like his kids. Back _then _he was a very stern guy. He wouldn't whine about being hungry until Master fed us, he wouldn't bend the orders of Master either, he had to do everything _exactly _as was said. He was annoying to be around actually. I looked up to him, sure, but sometimes I couldn't stand him. I once had the thought that Blitzen wouldn't even take a dump without Master's orders."

"Really?" Naruto laughed, almost not believing that the aloof acting leader of them had once been so strict and uptight. "Hey, Yamato, do you think we'll ever meet him again?"

"Oh? Why would you ask that?"

"Well…" Naruto looked away in embarrassment, "I'm starting to think we'll never find him."

Suddenly, Sakura bolted up out of her chair, no signs of tiredness were apparent on her face anymore. She walked toward the direction of the window, pushing its doors open once she got there.

"Where are you going?" Yamato demanded, as he watched the youngest member of the house put her booted foot onto the sill of the window, not wanting to lose tabs on any of his companions.

"To go look for him."

With those words she threw herself out the window, letting the cold air fill her lungs as she fell. In less than a second she had the will to shift. As though she had never been human, her body transformed into a sleek deer with a coat of red copper, silver hooves galloping against the air as she rose in height, and disappeared into the coming evening.

**Yeah, I know that today is Christmas, but I finally finished the plotline for the story and began writing. (I would rather write than sleep after being stuffed with awesome food *drools* My mom's Creamed Corn is the best!)**

**R&R Please!**

**MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!!!!!!!!!!!**


	2. Cornered

**Woot woot! Another chapter! (I would have updated again yesterday but my mom made me go to the After Christmas Sale- I nearly died. SOO MANNY PEOPLLLLEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!! *cough* Anyway….**

**ENJOY! ^_^**

* * *

The moon was high overhead, signifying how long she had been searching. Her legs were getting tired and her hooves were sore, but still she searched.

She had galloped through the air, paying close attention to any sign of her master's presence, intently focusing on the areas where the presence was thought to be strongest, but still she had found nothing.

She was somewhat confused.

Whenever she sensed a stronger presence in one area she would go to search, only to realize that an even stronger presence was in the opposite direction.

Nearing the crowded city, she started to descend toward the earth once again, hoping she would be luckier if she searched through the crowds as a human, not in the skies as a deer.

Crowded streets surrounded her. All the people shopping for Christmas were so close together it was starting to make her feel claustrophobic, but she ignored the weight in her stomach and gulped down her discomfort.

She could not be bothered by such little things now.

Christmas decorations and ornaments were everywhere. Illuminated stars plastered to doorways, candy cane walkways leading to nowhere, and men dressed in red Santa Claus suits and women dressed as elves were just a few examples.

Sakura wrinkled her nose.

The real Santa Claus did not have such ordinary attire. His uniform was elegant, beautiful. It was a deep red that reflected blindingly in the sunlight, and it had wool from the whitest, softest, cleanest sheep of the entire northern hemisphere. His belt was made of pure gold with precious gems studded around it from the deepest mines in the south. It was an outfit that was fit for his occupation; fit for his standings, for he was the highest ranking man in both the Artic and Antarctic regions.

It was not something that common people could duplicate, but no matter how annoying it was, Sakura could not find it in her to hate them. After all, she was Dancer, the gentlest of all the reindeer. She could not hate anyone, no matter what they did.

Elegantly making her way through the crowds, Sakura continued her search.

Every person she touched gave off no signal; not the hand fluttering on a shoulder, nor the tap of a hand on an arm. Nothing worked.

_Where is he?_ she asked herself.

She had been here in the city for nearly three hours with now luck.

_Perhaps, _she thought, _he is not a city goer… I should probably look by the park. There are houses over there that may hold a clue to his whereabouts. _

Doing just that, she waded hurriedly through the crowd until there were hardly any people in sight, leaving them all behind as she ran.

_I'll definitely find him._

* * *

"It feels much stronger now…" She huffed, marching her way through the shin high piles of snow at an even quicker pace.

If front of her was the park, but not the kind with a playground and benches, but a large forest type park. Tall evergreens grew boldly throughout the entire region of land, maple trees shadowing close beside them. It was almost impossible to see completely through the thick mass of trees. It was a dark abyssal wall of nature.

Soft chirping calls from birds filled her ears, the muffled thumping from the rabbits running around in their burrows made her relax, and the gentle fluttering of falling snowflakes made her long to return to the freedom of nature, to home.

"I need to hurry." she breathed, the painful longing to be reunited with her master filling her gut.

She looked around, her deep green eyes soaking up everything, searching for any possible humans that could see her.

She could see none. She could hear none. She could smell none.

Dashing into the darkness of the forest, she felt her blood heat up, her senses increase, and her body shift into the most familiar animal she had ever known.

Then she took off running.

* * *

The rush of the wind filled her ears, the coldness of it stinging her eyes in a familiar assault as she ran.

She sprung throughout the maze of trees, elegantly springing between them with ease even thought they were merely a foot apart.

Dancer was not the fastest of the reindeer, that title belonged to Blitzen alone. She also did not have the most stamina or endurance, that belonged to the always serious pale-eyed Prancer. The one who could persevere the most was also the one who made everyone feel at ease, Cupid. In fact, everyone seemed to have something that the others had, claiming their titles above her. There was, however, one thing that no one could match that Dancer had.

Dancer was the most agile of all the reindeer.

Combine this with her above average speed, her unswayable determination, and the fact that no one could change her mind once she had set it, she was completely impossible to catch.

They, the others, always tried to keep a close eye on her. Though she was the youngest, the deer in her was the most loyal to their master. By not looking for him she felt as though she had betrayed him, so she always tried to search for him, even if it was only from the window in the confines of her bedroom.

She had tried to run away many times in the past to look for him by herself, so much so that Blitzen had ordered to lock her in her room, and to keep a guard posted by the door and window. It was a harsh punishment, but it was the only way they could keep her at bay. They already had one member of the team to look for, two would be even harder. One time she had succeeded in escaping from the home they all stayed in. It had been in a past life, nearly thirty years ago. She had only been able to get fifteen minutes of time to run, but that had allowed her to make it a third way across the country in her search. That was, until Blitzen found her and dragged her back.

Confused, she had demanded to know why he had been able to find her.

"Hrm…that would probably have to be…a father's intuition." Blitzen had responded with a smile.

Dancer did not understand what he had meant until later.

It was two years after she had tried to escape when a sudden overwhelming feeling in her gut had made her try to run away again. Something in her instincts had yelled at her, ordered her, demanded of her that she run to the woods by the eastern mountains. She didn't understand the sudden urge to go until she saw the look of terror on Blitzen's face.

"Cupid." he had breathed, and he immediately shifted, even in the house, bolting through the door and taking off running with a speed that earned him the title of Fastest Among the Eight.

He had returned that evening, carrying a sleeping Cupid on his back, who had reverted back into human form. Cupid was clawed and bleeding, large gashes running down his side, with a large bruise on his forehead just beneath his fair blonde hair, the wounds that made the scars that he had today.

She had looked to Blitzen for answers, and received only one word.

"Wolves."

That was when she understood everything.

Everyone, Dasher, her, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, D and B…all of them were connected. If one was in danger, the others would know immediately. If one was hurt, the others would have the intolerable desire to rush to their aid. No matter where they were, they would know exactly where to go. No town had to be mentioned, no map needed to be drawn, all they had to do was take off running.

They were all linked, they were all bound. They were their to save each other. They were also there to imprison each other.

No matter where you ran, no matter how far you traveled, they would always know where you were. Blitzen would always come and find you, for he was the most linked to all. Even if you desired to run away from your duty, you would never truly be free.

She had been annoyed with it, the bond that they all shared that kept no privacy between them, but she had loved it too, for it was the same type of bond that was leading her toward her master. The only reason it was not as strong was because Santa was not a deer, he was a human, but it was still there. As long as the bond was there, as long as that instinct to search was within her chest, she would never stop looking. She _would _find him.

* * *

Her silver hooves gleamed in what little light melted through the trees.

Senses sharp, legs giving the same rhythmic beat as she ran, heavy huffs of breath became the chorus along with them, she ran even faster.

The sounds of animals had become near impossible to hear with the concentration she had. The silence was almost intimidating.

She stopped, taking a long deep breath in order to capture all the scents in the air to assist her with her search.

_Soil, tree sap, rabbit, fox, urine, bark, human…_

_Human?_

Dancer nearly choked on the air.

_Wait a minute… Didn't Donner say something about humans… _she thought seriously.

She tried to think back to what he had said in the living room, her mind having trouble remembering through the haze of her tiredness then.

His familiar voice finally filled the ears of her memory.

"_Hunters are getting more fearless. They've been shooting at deer in the park even, thinking no one will notice since it's so wooded."_

Fear started swelling in her, her adrenaline kicking in, a slight paranoia infiltrating her mind.

She looked around slowly.

_Where is it? Where is it where the humans are? I know they're close by…but where?_

She shook her head quickly, shaking the excess thoughts away. If there _were_ human hunters she would need to have a clear head. She would need to be ready to run.

_Wait a minute, why didn't I just start running already? I highly doubt they'd be able to aim at me, much less hit me with a bullet._

But before she could even spring into action, a loud sound resonated through the air, a deafening, terrifying sound. The sound she had been praying not to hear.

Gunshot.

It took her a while to realize what happened.

The forest was incredibly silent. Even the wind no longer wished to make a sound, as though the wind itself was holding its breath.

Dancer was frozen, caught in the headlights of the noise. She was startled, confused, and uncertain of what had just happened.

The sound of gunshot was still ringing in her ears, the loud pounding of her heart filling up her head so that she could no longer concentrate. She felt as if she had just swallowed her stomach as it tried to flee through her mouth.

A dull burning was emitting from somewhere; a steady, painful throbbing.

A new scent filled her senses.

Blood.

Doubtfully, still not believing what had happened, she turned toward her tail. Red trickled, smearing against her beautiful copper coat as it drizzled down.

There, on her thigh just above her right leg, was a deep bleeding wound.

_I've been hit?_ she thought confused.

That's all it took.

Ignoring the pain, she dashed through the woods, darting in and out of the tree-filled-maze, trying to lose her pursuers.

_No, I've been shot! They know they hit something! I can't just stay put! I have to run! They'll be following me, all of this slow is leaving tracks. The only thing I can do is put as much distance between them and me as I can… I have to bear the pain…I have to…_

But even as she thought it, her back legs gave way, and she tumbled forward on her front, a new searing pain emerging in her as she crashed into a thorn filled bush.

_What am I going to do? What am I going to do? I haven't put enough space between us…I've slowed down because of the wound…I'm just like a normal deer now… No!_

She looked around frantic, trying to find any source of shelter she could, any source of a shield.

To her left, only two yards away, was a vastly large Evergreen with a trunk thick enough that she could hide behind it ease, but not as a deer.

Slowly, painfully, she picked herself up. She swayed slightly from side to side, stumbling as she tried to walk. Her back leg having to be held up, making her limp in a slow unsightly manner.

_I need to…_

She felt the relaxing pull as the shift came. Her blood stained hoofed legs became human feet in Eskimo Uggs, being towed along by two strong human legs.

Her wounded leg was numb, and she could only drag it along as she limped slowly forward toward the tree.

A stinging gash was on her left her arm, on the inward side of her elbow, bleeding heavily from when the skin was slashed when she fell into the thorn bush. She held it at bay with her other arm's hand, applying pressure and trying to make the pain as dull as possible.

Her pink hair stuck to her face from her blood and sweat, her hat making her bangs uncomfortably plaster to her face, blocking the complete view of her eyes.

The cold made her gasping breathes visible, and she had to wince every time she took one because of another thorn gash on her neck.

Finally making it close enough to the tree, she collapsed beneath it, tired and cold, alone and scared.

_I…I just have to wait it out. They'll pass…they'll definitely pass… Even if they find me…I'm not a deer…so they won't kill me… I hope…_

A tree branch snapping from somewhere behind her made her freeze.

The sound of a footstep filled her sensitive ears, followed by the soft crunching of the snow beneath the weight of its owner.

Sakura clamped a slightly bleeding hand to her mouth, trying to silence her heavy breathing, and slammed her eyes closed. Soon she stopped breathing all together, to scared to keep her lungs moving.

He was following her blood trail. The change of footprints was probably unnoticed by him, he was only following the bright color of the blood.

_I'm sorry, Master. I need to stop looking for you for a while. Only a little while…just until this passes… Please…forgive me…Master._

A single tear made its way down her cheek.

She had been so close to finding him, she knew it. He was somewhere close by, extremely close, but still…he was still so far away to her.

Another footstep somewhere behind the tree crunched in the snow, the loud sound of oncoming death to her. Even though she wasn't breathing, the stench of dead animals' blood still filled her with a sickening pressure.

_Forgive me. Forgive me. Forgive me, Master. I don't want to die!_

Another footstep sounded, this time right next to her.

Her eyes snapped open in sheer terror, a quick gulp of air being swallowed in her shock.

_That hunter couldn't have moved over here so fast…no without me noticing. Impossible… It couldn't be… multiple hunters?!_

She could not move, she was paralyzed in fear. All she could do was listen and cry salty tears as the second hunter got closer and closer.

Her heart was in her throat now, ignoring the fact that it was causing it's owner to choke.

_Thu-thump!Thu-thump!Thu-thump!Thu-thump!Thu-thump!Thu-thump!_

The fingernails of her hand dug into her skin as she tried to keep her screams down, clamping her hand even more painfully to her mouth.

_I'm going to die. Even if Blitzen knew I was in trouble, he could never get here in time, even though he is the fastest. This is it, isn't it?_

The wound on her thigh was still bleeding immensely, her head was becoming woozy with the blood loss. She tried to stay focused, but as the hunter got closer, she found she didn't want to.

_This is_ she thought terrified.

A pale hand reached for her through the darkness

_The end!_

Her mind went black, her body went limp, and she fell into the coldness of unconsciousness, completely succumbing to whatever death would have in store for her, no longer having the strength to fight it.

* * *

**Did you like it? I might be able to write/upload another chapter today, but I promised to finish a friend's story, so I can't promise anything for this story for today. Sorry.**

**Anyway, read and review please!**


	3. Fat Man in the Red Suit

**Yeah, I would have updated sooner but I was…grounded… *growls* My laptop got taken away so I lost my documents I was working on, and the computer downstairs had the password changed. My father is very THUROUGH in his punishment. I THOUGHT I WAS GONNA DIE WITHOUT MY INTERNET! So, I'm also updating ****Life of an Oblivious Idiot ****today as well in repentance.**

**My favorite character EVER is in this chapter. Can you guess who he is? If not, you should seriously read some more of my stuff. *tsk tsk* I still can't believe that he's in like…every story I've written… Wait! Colored World doesn't have him! *growls* I'll have to fix that…**

* * *

A loud pounding filled her ears, something steady, thick; the clanging of a monster. She tried to focus to find a way to escape the noise, the heavy painful noise, but she could not. Her body refused to move, her lips refused to speak, and her mind refused to think logically for her. She had been betrayed by her own self.

There were no lights to give her a view of her surroundings, everything was just black; a murky bluish black.

_Is this…death?_ Sakura had thought in panic, not wanting to accept that she had failed once again to find her master in her lifetime.

The mere horror of the thought was enough to force her muscles to move, her eyes to open, and the light coming in through a window to come flooding in to her eyes, burning them with a painful sting.

She winced, slamming her eyes closed quickly in order to defend them; hesitantly opening them as soon as she felt it was safe. More light swam around her, but not offensively this time. She was able to get a clear view of the place she was in now, and it was not death, it wasn't even limbo, and if it was…it had not been what she expected.

Her small body had been placed on a large, queen sized, soft bed, tucked beneath warm cotton sheets, with her pink hair scattered about her as her head rested on a comfortable pillow. The sheets and blankets were a rich black color, with splatters of red decorating them.

Blood.

The design of it anyway…

She tried to keep from wrinkling her nose at the depicted gore, but halfway failed, a small grimace making its way on her lips.

Sakura looked around more, this time soaking up the room she was in as a whole.

The room was neat and tidy, with a wood floor that reflected like a mirror in the light. There was a desk shoved in the corner with a lamp and a laptop, as well as a pile of neatly arranged books and textbooks. The walls had posters of various famous metal rock bands, as well as pictures of some intimidating people, that were supposedly famous fighters by what the posters had written on them.

_Well, _she thought, _whatever had taken her here was definitely human._

After looking around the room she had realized that the clanging noise was still being emitted, but there was something else too, something faded and in the background. A rhythmic thumping, with a steady beat, wavering every now and then only to return to the same beat.

It was music.

Curious, Sakura pulled back the covers keep in her in place, and stepped out of the bed.

She was startled at first, realizing that her skirt and long-sleeved sweater had been replaced with a lengthy, short sleeved black T-shirt, but for some reason, it didn't bother her. The fact that it had the musty yet spiced of scent of male and sweat did not make her feel fearful or violated either. In fact, she felt relaxed, but she didn't know why. Perhaps it was because who ever had changed her clothes had been considerate enough to give her something that would hang low enough in order to cover her thighs to where her fingertips were. She had felt that if the man who helped her was that considerate, then he couldn't possibly be a bad person.

That's when she saw it.

Her ivory skin -that had been wounded, dirty, and bleeding the last time she remembered- appeared to be washed and clean, with a cloth-like bandage wrapped around her upper leg and fastened together in a form of first-aid where the bullet had hit her. Down her legs, both appeared to have damage from the thorns and tree branches, there were bandages and a thin film of ointment covering the lesser of the wounds. Looking the rest of herself over, she saw that her arms had received the same treatment. Her wounded hands had been cared for with a thin material of cloth wrapped repeatedly around her palms and backhand, proof of when she braced herself when she fell. Even her face had been covered with a thick square of cloth that had been taped securely over an unseen wound on the right side of her jaw.

_But who would have…?_

Recovering from the surprise of being treated, Sakura proceeded to the door that lead to whoever had taken care of her, noticing that the horrible clanging noise had stopped, but the heavy beat of the music still remained.

The floor was cold against her feet, but not painfully so. Soon she reached the door, pressed against it, and walked to the other room where her savior awaited.

* * *

The room she walked in was extremely different from the other one.

This room was white. There was no furniture to relax on besides a single folding chair, and the only counter in the room had only a giant boom box planted on it. The walls were covered in mirrors, with a single, wide window opened fully in order to let the breeze of the evening come into the stale room. The space in the middle of the room had been taken up by an assortment of exercise machines.

On the far wall was a bench press, the bar located on the pegs had been loaded with weights on both ends. Next to it was a big metal pole like thing with many pegs, each peg holding an assortment of weights. The machines next to the bench press were a series of arm muscle enhancing devices, and on the opposite end was ones to enhance the muscles of the leg.

Sakura was slightly confused.

She was certain that there was a human in the room. It smelt of human, and human sweat. She could sense one, a very powerful aura belonged to this person. Perhaps he was the only person to ever come into this room…that would explain why there weren't any disturbances mixing in with the scent.

It came again, the clanging noise she had faintly heard before, only this time it was very near to her, but not beside her.

Up.

Following the direction of the noise, she let her green eyes wander to the ceiling by the far wall, and sure enough, there was the human.

A long metal bar was running all along the ceiling, about a foot down from the cemented surface, and about two feet away from the nearest wall. It was with this bar that the human had wrapped his legs around, the bending joints of his knees being the only thing holding him up. In his arms he was clutching a heavy looking circular, yet flat, weight. Judging by its size, Sakura estimated that it had to be at least fifty pounds. The weight seemed to be of no mind to the man, for he gripped it tight, and raised and lowered himself into perfectly executed sit ups with the slightest of ease, each time making sure the weight hit the bar so that it made a clanging noise to prove he had completed the exercise perfectly each time.

She awed at him for a moment, watching the way his muscles flexed with each movement, the way the beads of warm sweat trailed down his skin. It reminded her of what Kakashi looked like whenever he trained to get ready for the yearly search. Sure, they had never found him, but they needed to be prepared for the day they did, and Kakashi, being Blitzen, was always preparing the most out of everyone.

Her heart sank a little at the thought of her superior. She missed him. No doubt he would have been worried sick from the moment he sensed her immense fear. She needed to return to him as soon as possible, if only to tell him that she was alive and safe.

She had to leave.

"Thank you…for helping me." she said meekly, her voice barely audible, even to herself.

The muscular man immediately stopped with his sit ups, his body flipping into a perfectly executed penny-drop, the weight being placed carefully on a nearby rack. Now he faced toward her, a stoic look to his expression.

His attire consisted of only black sweatpants, the kind that tied around the ankles. He wore no shirt, his toned chest gleaming with sweat. The only thing else he wore was a dog-tag on a long silver chain, signaling that he had served in the army.

Most people would be slightly scared, if not terrified, yet Sakura remained calm. There was something so familiar about him, something… nostalgic.

She turned her gaze to his face now, his pale statue-like face. His hair was a shaggy and wet with sweat, causing the red locks to be plastered to his head. Some strands hung in his eyes, but he ignored them, not caring at their existence. Though his hair was indeed a strange color, it was not that that caught her attention.

It was his eyes.

Jaded green, a deep frozen sea in each eye, a beautiful, irreplaceable, gleaming in each one that was illuminated with a mysterious light. They were so breathtakingly stunning that Sakura forgot to breathe.

She knew those eyes.

She could never forget them.

They were her master's.

A strange feeling washed over her. She wasn't sure what it was. It was like a calm. She felt relaxed, safe… Peaceful. That was the word. Though it slightly scared her as the thought crossed her mind, but she realized… She no longer wished to go home.

_The others would understand…_ she thought quietly, _If he doesn't wish to return…I can't leave him. If he doesn't come with me, I will never go back…_

But she was afraid to ask him to go home with her. She was afraid he would laugh at her, call her crazy. Maybe he would yell. Maybe this wasn't even her master and she was wrong!

Too fearful to ask her question, she stood there, the redhead watching her intently. His gaze pressuring, his aura smothering. It was as though he knew she wanted to ask something…

"Um…" her voice cracked, "Can I stay here…until tonight?" Her hands fidgeted at her sides, grabbing at the hem of the shirt covering her thighs, her eyes doubtful that he would say yes, much less answer. Yet when she looked at him she found that he wasn't appalled, he wasn't even angry. His eyes had widened slightly. He was confused.

"Don't you have a home?" he asked, his voice much softer than he had intended, but it was still void of emotion.

Sakura shook her head, the weight of her actions suffocating her, making her so dizzy with guilt that she wanted to cry. "I… ran away."

He uncrossed his arms, somewhat annoyed. "Now why the hell would you do something like that? Someone abused you?" he asked, almost immediately understanding that it made him look concerned, he added a quick "Not like I care though…" to cover his tracks.

Sakura sat down on the mat of a bench-press, her hand tracing along the cold metal bar, over the grooves and curves of the labeled weights.

"No, it was nothing like that. Everyone was nice. It's just… sometimes you can't live with people who have different ideas than you do." Her finger stopped tracing the metal weight, frozen on the first curve of the eight, almost surprised at how easy it was to talk to him. "You know?"

The redhead grabbed the foldable chair from his right, flipping it around so that he sat reversed on it, his legs stretching out in front of him, his folded arms resting on the rim.

He stared intently at her. Trying to figure her out.

"What's your name?"

"Da-" she quickly corrected herself, looking down at her feet. "My name is Sakura."

He quirked an eyebrow, thinking that she was too afraid of him to give him her real name. He shrugged it off. It didn't matter. He was only taking care of her because he was bored.

He sighed, combing through his drying sweaty hair with his fingers. "I have to go to the store quick. I'll be back in about fifteen minutes. Are you able to take care of yourself for that long?"

Sakura nodded.

The redhead got up and walked over to the door, grabbing a hooded sweatshirt, pulling it over his head as he prepared to exit the room.

"Wait!" Sakura shrieked, chasing after him until she caught the corner of his sweater as he finished pulling it into place. "You never told me your name." she said, slightly blushing.

He stared at her, feeling irritated by how close she had gotten to him. Yet he couldn't find it in him to shove her off. Instead he found himself answering her question.

"Gaara."

"Gaara." Sakura repeated, liking the sound it made as it rolled off her tongue. She smiled widely. "Have a safe trip, Gaara!"

The jaded eyed teen kept an eye on her, only slightly longer than he had intended, giving a small "Hn." before heading out the door.

* * *

**DON'T WORRY PEOPLES! THERE WILL BE MORE! SORRY THIS WAS SO SHORT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!**

**HAPPY NEW YEAR!**


	4. Run Away With Me

**Okay, Gaara is a little OC in this chapter. I'm trying to get the point across that he's got a stoic front for others, but he's really kind of an aloof guy. Sorry if it annoys a lot of readers…**

* * *

Sakura sat against the mirrored wall, her back pressed against the cold reflective glass, her knees brought up to her chest, her face buried between them.

_I'm sorry D, B, everyone… You must be so worried, but I can't go home yet. I haven't even asked him…confronted him… I don't think I can ever go home…_

Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of a door opening and a body coming through.

"Hey." the newly familiarized voice called in a gruff greeting.

The pink haired girl looked up at him, just in time to catch a spherical object thrown at her. It was green, and round, and smelled fresh and delightful. Something she had not had in a long time.

"How did you know I liked apples?" she mumbled to herself, rolling the firm fruit around in her hands. Apples were what her Master had always fed to her before their journey on Christmas Eve. Since he brought her one it only made her more certain that he was the one they had all been looking for, for so long.

"Don't get your hopes up, I just grabbed something." Gaara mumbled back tiredly.

He dropped to the floor, landing in an awkward sitting position, yet he seemed completely comfortable sitting that way.

"Food should be ready in about five minutes. It's nothing special, only vegetables and rice."

Sakura nodded. The information wasn't necessary, for she could smell the food cooking from the moment he put it in the water to boil, but she was still grateful that he was considerate enough to tell her…still grateful to hear the sound of his voice…

* * *

She couldn't keep her eyes off him, his eyes, his face, his figure. She liked the sight of his chest rising and falling with each breath, his hair slightly stirring with each gentle wave of air form the open window behind him. It was like she was drawn to him, like she couldn't look away from him, even if she tried.

He noticed, and it was starting to piss him off.

"You have a problem with me?" he growled, and edge to his voice. He didn't like it when people watched him.

"No." she answered quietly.

He glared. "Don't be so full of yourself. I'm not going to pounce on you and rape you, if that's what you're scared of. You're not even my type."

She gripped the apple in her hands tightly, her eyes watering slightly with hurt, her body tensing in protest. "That's not it!" she yelled, her voice much louder than she had expected it to be. She blinked a few times, startled herself by how ferocious she had sounded, allowing a few tears to make their way down her face.

Gaara was unaffected by the outburst, in fact, it made him somewhat angry that she dared yell at him. "Then what is it then! Why do you keep staring at me!?" he demanded, his voice not even trying to hide the sharp edge to it.

"Because I'm afraid you're going to leave me again!" she suddenly screamed.

He sat silent for a while, stunned by her sudden outburst. Sakura's lip started quivering as she held back her sobs, the tears flowed down her face none-the-less.

"Look, if you can't even take me going to the store, then you need some serious help." he hissed, the most threatening of all glares illuminating from his eyes.

"It's not that! It's before!" Sakura cried.

"What are you talking about!? I just met you today!" he demanded, his hands balling into fists.

"But I've been searching for you my whole life!" she yelled, standing up and taking a step forward, her own hand clutching into a ball at her chest, trying to hold her beating heart in place.

"What the hell does that mean!?" he yelled back.

_No, no, no! This isn't how it's supposed to be! I wasn't supposed to tell him through an argument. I need to calm down! Calm down, calm down, calm down… _she pleaded with herself.

Sakura bit her lip, letting the pain and the metallic taste of her own blood calm her

emotions.

She took a deep breath.

"You may not believe this, and I'm not going to force you to, but you need to at least listen to what I have to say. After that I'll be quiet. I'll leave if you want me to."

_No. I don't want to leave him… I've finally found him!_

Gaara sat up, walking over to the chair and positioning himself in the same aloof position he was in before.

He was still glaring.

"Fine, I'll listen. But it better be _damn_ good."

Sakura nodded.

She wasn't sure how she had done it, she wasn't sure if she could do it again, but for some reason the raging teen in front of her had calmed down. He was still irritable, yes, but he was willing to listen, and for that she was grateful.

"It all happened eighty years ago, when Santa Claus-"

"Santa Claus?" Gaara laughed accusingly.

Sakura dared glare at him. "Yes, Santa Claus. You said you'd listen."

He said nothing except a small "Hn." for an answer.

"Eighty years ago Santa Claus went missing…"

* * *

"I didn't know anything when I was little. I didn't know who I was or why I was even living. All I knew is that I was…different. The other kids… they were always wary of me…always…" she tried to think of a word to describe it. "Distant."

"I always felt I was out of place, like I had to search for something. My parents assured me that I was theirs and not adopted, but I didn't believe them. I _couldn't _believe them. It was like an instinct. Something screaming in the back of my head, a steady repeating voice saying _I do not belong to them_.

"The first time I shifted I was eleven years old. I had thought I was dreaming at first. I mean, what eleven year old could turn into a deer and fly through the air? I knew it wasn't a dream when I woke up on top of a telephone pole. The firemen and police were called and everything. My parents denied every accusing question I asked, saying I needed help, and sent me to a counselor.

"Everything was fine for the next couple of years. I didn't have anymore strange dreams, and I didn't shift again. I learned to accept things. I was a better athlete than everyone in my school because my grandmother was a track star. All the animals came to me whenever I was outside because I lacked a threatening aura. I was a vegetarian because of the documentary we had to watch in school about how beef was made, and I didn't drink milk because I was lactose intolerant. I was perfectly ordinary. That was what I had convinced myself."

"And then…when I was fourteen…I…" Sakura wrapped her arms around her knees, "I…stopped aging."

Gaara coughed, a choking like sound, as though the air was trying to kill him.

"I look fourteen but I'm really over twenty years old! My mom…she left…and my dad…he…he thought such a freak shouldn't exist…and he tried to kill me.

"I ran away. I'm not sure where I thought I could go. All I remember is that it was cold, and wet, and I was so tired, and so frozen, and then he came. A man with silver hair and a gentle voice. He took my hand and brought me to a big house by the riverside, right next to the forest. There were others there, seven it total. It was the first time I felt at home…and I had only just met them.

"That's when he told me everything, the silver-haired man. I was a reindeer of Santa Claus, reincarnated, after he had gone missing eighty years ago. Everyone, all the reindeer, were in the house, all of them wanting to look for him. All of them connected. That's how he had found me…through our connection. He was Blitzen, the oldest and most experienced of the reindeer. We were all supposed to look for Santa, each and every year, until we found him at last. He said it would be unmistakably him. You would feel at ease around him. You would feel at home around him. You could not deny what you were, and neither could our Master. And I do feel that way around you!"

Sakura leapt up, wanting to desperately be next to Gaara, but not brave enough to move.

"Gaara, you are him! I cannot leave your side! I feel pained every time I see you leave! You're aura is nostalgic, that's why I wasn't afraid of you when I saw you for the first time! You have to come back with me, please Gaara! I cannot live without being by your side. After knowing, seeing, _talking_ to you, I can't leave you like you didn't exist! I do not have it in me separate from you once again! I need you! Gaara, you are my master. You are _our _master. We love you! I love you! So please, Master, come back home!" she cried, holding out her hand to him.

He didn't know what to think, what to do. Instead he did the only thing he could think of.

"You're crazy. There is no connection between us at all."

"Then how did you find me in the woods. How did you know exactly where I was!?" she protested.

"It was a coincidence!" Gaara stammered. "I just had the urge to go on a walk in that part of the park! It had nothing to do with you!"

"It was our connection that caused the urge!"

"You-you have no proof that I'm-"

"You never had any friends when you were little. You were like me. They feared you. Ran from you. Called you a monster because they knew you weren't fully human! Animals aren't afraid of you and come close to you. When you look at people you instantly know if they're good people of bad. You also know what their intentions are! You've even stopped aging haven't you!?"

"SHUT UP!" Gaara yelled, his hands clutched tightly against his ears to block out the sound of her voice. "You know nothing! You're just a crazy little brat that I found in the woods! Stop acting like you know me! I am not your master! You are not my friend!" he wailed, his eyes slammed closed.

"Maybe I am crazy…" Sakura whimpered quietly, her eyes looking into the distance, her mind thinking of what it would have been like if things were different. "Maybe you aren't. Maybe I'm wrong. But if that's so…I want you to say it."

Gaara took in a quick breath, his hands releasing his ears, his eyes daring to open and look at her. They were scared, uncertain, lonely…"All you have to do is say I am not Santa Claus, and all of this will go away. We cannot deny who we are, which means if you can, you are free from this burden."

"I" he started quietly, "I am not" but he couldn't finish the rest. He tried, his mouth formed the words, his voice tried to speak them, to _scream_ them, but they refused to be said. His eyes widened, fearful of why his voice had betrayed him. "What does that mean?" he demanded.

Sakura walked toward him calmly, her hand extending toward him once again.

"It means you don't have to be alone anymore." She said, a gentle smile on her face, a voice soft and caring, like the voice the silver-haired man had so long ago. "If you take my hand, I'll take you to where we reside. It'll be alright."

"And if I refuse to go?" he challenged, not liking the idea of having to go to an unfamiliar place with unfamiliar people.

Sakura sat down beside him, her hand still willing to be grasped. "Then I will stay here by your side forever."

"But don't you want to go home?" he demanded.

Sakura nodded. "Yes, I do."

He snarled, "Then why would you-"

Sakura smiled at him again, her head tilting to the side to try and be reassuring.

"I am Dancer, the most loyal among your reindeer. I would not leave your side for the world unless you order it of me."

There must have been something in the way she talked to him, looked at him, smiled at him… He felt calm, relaxed, safe… Peaceful. That was the word. He wasn't sure what the outcome would be, what the dangers would be, or even what his life would be, but he could not fight his instinct. He found himself reaching out, and taking her hand.

"Hold on tight!" Sakura said happily once he grasped it, startling him, her smile turned into a wide grin.

"What do you mean hold on tight, you-" his thought was cut off by his body being lifted as it was hoisted up on what appeared to be a deer's back. "Wow, now, hold on a sec! What do you think you're doing?"

"What reindeer do best!"

Gaara was startled, his eyes widening, his face contorting into worry and shock. He had accepted that Santa Claus was real and that he _was_ him, but he was still unprepared for a talking deer. One could only take so much unbelievable discoveries in a night without being affected.

He felt the muscles of her body move beneath him, and gripped her silken copper coat a little tighter, just in time for her to spring forward in a run toward the open window.

He let out a small yelp of fear. "You don't mean… You're not going to-"

She burst through the window into a full fledged gallop, a cheerful little laugh escaping through the air. "Fly!"

* * *

**This may have been crappy, but read and review anyway people! Please!?**

**Hope you liked it!**

**HAPPY NEW YEAR!**


	5. The Things That Were

"Why can't we find her!?" Naruto wailed in distress as his hands clenched his hair tightly in worry, ripping a few golden strands away from his scalp. His eyes, crazed with his building emotions, were bloodshot and puffy from nights of crying and lack of sleep.

He looked over to his superior, the silver haired Blitzen, who was looking intently out the window and into the snowy night.

"I can't believe she's really gone…" a blonde said quietly from her spot at the kitchen table, a steaming cup of apple cider in her hands. It was Vixen, returned home from a day of fun and romance when an overwhelming sense of danger had gripped her and made her run back home as fast as she could. She had burst through the doors, demanding to know what had happened, only to realize that Dancer, the baby of the family, the reindeer that she was closest to, had disappeared. "How could this…happen?" she cried, breaking down into tears for the second time that day.

"Ino…" the brunette haired teen next to her said in despair, not wanting to see the girl he liked in such a painful state. He wrapped his arm around her shoulder, and pulled her to his chest. She immediately clenched his shirt and used it to cover her tears while she bawled into his chest.

"Shi…kamaru…" she whimpered through her bouts of crying. She thought of continuing what she was going to say, but no longer found the strength to move her mouth as her sadness engulfed her.

Everyone had known right away that their beloved little sister had been in trouble, the bond connecting them all had shown them that. It seemed to only make things worse, knowing that she was out there, alone, petrified, and in pain. The connection made it easier to find each other and relate to each other, but it was so vague at moments, it only made their imaginations take off to the most horrible of things happening to their friend.

It only made them despair more.

Yamato got up from his chair and walked slowly over to Kakashi, his arms crossed over his chest to keep the others from seeing him trembling in worry. He observed his friend with concern. The silver haired man had been staring out the window the moment he had come back home after loosing the scent of Sakura. He had not eaten, he had not drank, he had not slept, he just stood there, all his concentration focused on finding even the smallest trace of her. The brunette haired man sighed, opening his mouth to speak.

"Shall I call them back, Kakashi?" he asked. He was referring to Prancer and Dasher, or rather, Neji and Sasuke.

"Yeah, it's getting dark out. They must be exhausted." the man replied in a monotone, his eyes never leaving the outside world.

Yamato nodded.

The moment the pang of danger had run through everyone, and the situation had been understood that Dancer was in danger, everyone had been on edge, but positive and hopeful once Blitzen bolted out of the door to go get her, but when he returned empty handed with a distraught look on his face, everything had shattered. Sasuke would not accept that they couldn't find her, and had demanded that they all go out and look for her. Blitzen had ordered them not to, saying that it was too risky sending everyone out to look for her at the same time. If another one got in danger and needed to be saved, it would be extremely difficult to make it to them if they were all focused on finding the one. Sasuke had gone into hysterics at this, throwing around the furniture and yelling at the top of his lungs.

He was suffering the most out of everyone. He blamed himself for her disappearance.

It was him who had been insensitive and telling everyone that it was impossible to find their master, and this had formed a rift between everyone. Dancer, with her loyal nature, found no way to coup with the situation than to go look for him again.

If he hadn't said anything, if he had just remained calm… Dancer might not have gone missing.

Blitzen immediately understood what was going through his subordinate's mind, and so he had allowed him to look for her. Whether he left to look as Dasher or Sasuke, he wasn't sure. All Kakashi knew was that it was causing his comrade more damage to stay inside than to be in the outside world, and so he had let him go, only he had ordered the pale eyed Prancer, who's calm and composed nature would help keep Dasher in line, to accompany him as he searched.

They had left in the early morning, and the sun was already hidden behind the horizon.

Yamato closed his eyes, focusing his orders onto the two deer outside.

"_Come back, we'll call it a night. This is an order from both Donner and Blitzen." _he thought to them loudly, making sure they heard him no matter how far away they were.

Once done, Donner stared out the window with his comrade, one very painful question on his mind.

"Do you think…it's happened again?" he dared ask, his voice breaking.

Kakashi looked to his good friend, his eyes filled with just as much pain as his companions were, "Pray to whoever is listening that it hasn't. I don't think these kids will be able to handle it yet."

* * *

"I'm going to start descending now! Make sure to hold on tight!" Sakura said loudly in order to be heard over the rushing wind. Gaara nodded, clenching her copper coat tighter, but being sure not to hurt her.

The red haired man was quite surprised, though they were flying at an insanely fast speed, he didn't feel the effects of the wind at all. He wasn't cold, his eyes weren't feeling the stinging of the wind, the force of the air wasn't trying to throw him off the deer's back… The only evidence he had that they were actually moving was the blur of lights below and the swaying of his hair with each gallop the deer made.

There was a feeling in the pit of his stomach that he couldn't explain, it was like a fluttering, yet a hesitance, and then he remembered what it was.

Excitement.

The next thing he knew Sakura, or Dancer as he recalled, was trotting on the snowy ground, slowing down and stopping a few meters away from a large house in what appeared to be a forest. His eyes widened as he took it in.

It was a beautiful house, appearing to be built out of marble, or something like it. It was a three story building with Victorian styled characteristics, with extremely large windows on every floor, and a wide oak door as the entrance. The walls were clean and reflective, the windows clear and allowed him to somewhat see inside the house. There were lights on from most of the rooms, which reflected out the windows and brightened the snowy world outside.

"Are you able to get down from here, or do you want me to lay down?" the deer asked politely.

"Hn." Gaara replied as he gently swung his leg over and slid off of her back. He landed on the white blanketed ground, but immediately fell onto his butt. He was surprised, for his body was much more stiff than he had thought it would be. The observation of his body was interrupted by a strange sound. It appeared to be coming from somewhere above.

He looked up.

Gaara's eyes widened as the large window on the top floor burst open, and a person leapt out. It was three stories above the ground, but he leapt as though it was the most natural thing in the world. His arms were extended above his head and out of the way, his legs bending to prepare for the landing, his silver hair flying around him as he fell…

"Sakura!" the male yelled loudly, relief and anger in his voice. He landed on the ground with a soft sound, his feet barely submerging in the deep white snow.

"Kakashi!" Sakura called back, her voice filled with overwhelming happiness, and just as much relief as the man's had been. Her hand was clutched to her chest, her leg taking a step forward in an attempt to run to her friend, but she held herself back.

Gaara shook his head. He wasn't quite used to her changing into human form so fast.

That's when he realized what she was wearing. His large T-shirt. That was it. No shoes, no shorts, just the T-shirt. He suddenly felt a wave of concern for her. Was she cold? Was she going to get sick?

"Where were you? Are you okay? How are your wounds?" Kakashi was asking quickly as he ran over to the his pink haired comrade. He was extending his arms to encase her in a tight hug when he froze, staring directly at Gaara, his black eyes going wide.

"You…"

Gaara started feeling incredibly uneasy as the older man kept looking at him, and all he knew how to do was get defensive, so he sent the silver haired man a threatening glare.

"Kakashi! She's back! Is she okay!?" came a multitude of voices followed by other people pouring out of the mansion at a high speed. Most of them, Gaara was surprised, were people that looked as young as he did, younger even, except for one older man, who looked to be in his mid twenties, with brunette hair. This man walked forward, holding the younger ones back, and walked up right next to Kakashi.

The two looked at each other for a brief moment, Kakashi nodding to the brunette, and then, they did something that shocked him even more than their appearance.

The silver haired Kakashi and the brunette bent down, and knelt before him.

"Welcome home, Master."

* * *

"What do you want?" Gaara snarled, his glare somewhat disguised by the red hair in his eyes.

He was talking to the blonde haired boy who had been staring at him for the past ten minutes, his eyes filled with wonder and mischievous glimmers. The blonde was sitting next to him on the couch, his legs crossed on the cushion, his hand supporting his head with the help of his arm on his knee.

The boy looked like a complete idiot, a completely dense idiot.

"You're really him, right." the boy asked, a wide goofy grin plastered on his face. He had no reason to ask, for he could feel it in his chest, but he was so overwhelmed with awe to remember that.

Gaara said nothing to him, instead he just looked at the ground, his hands clenching the fabric of his pants tightly in his discomfort. He wasn't used to having so many people stare at him without fear in their eyes.

He felt defenseless.

"I'm Cupid, by the way. Cupid! But you can call me Naruto." the blonde laughed gleefully, as his hand scratched the back of his head in such a way that made him look even more idiotic than before.

"You know, I was expecting him to look completely different. Like, a fat old man with no sense of fashion… You know?" a blonde haired girl whispered to the tired looking brunette next to her. The brunette was sitting in a comfortable chair, a bored look on his face, while the girl was sitting on the armrest of the boy's chair, her long hair pulled back into a high ponytail. "Now that I've actually seen him…he looks kinda hot… Right, Shika?"

The brunette called "Shika" let his eyes lock on Gaara for a moment, before he looked to the side, away from the blonde girl. "So troublesome…" he yawned, a slight flustered tone to his voice. He didn't exactly want the girl he liked to call another guy hot, even if that guy was their master.

A slight movement by Gaara's leg caught his attention. He knew what it was, but he looked down none the less, down to the sight of the sleeping pink haired girl. Her knees were held to her chest by her arms, though she had let one fall to the carpeted floor in her tiredness. Her eyes were shut sweetly, her face resting against the redheads leg like a pillow. He didn't find it uncomfortable or disturbing in the least, in fact, it felt almost normal, and he had gotten used to it by now.

Sakura never left his side.

From the moment the rest had found the two outside, Sakura had been by him. In the house, as he was sternly trying to refuse eating the food that was offered of him, as he sat down in the living room… she had stayed next to him with a soft smile on her face.

_She must have been exhausted… _Gaara had thought, as he remembered the ordeal in the forest that had happened only yesterday.

"Sorry to interrupt," Kakashi said politely, yet seriously, as he popped his head from around the corner, "I need to speak with you privately, Master." He glanced at the red haired boy with reassuring eyes.

"Hn." he replied as he stood up, slowly in order to keep Sakura from waking up at the movement. He quickly followed the man out of the room.

* * *

They had entered a spare bedroom on the second floor, away from all the others, for some privacy. Kakashi had allowed Gaara to enter first, as a sign of respect, but also a sign of reassurance. He didn't want Gaara to feel any more uncomfortable than he had to be. He didn't want him to feel cornered and pressured by all the new information. Kakashi wanted to remind the boy that he had a free will of his own, and that they weren't forcing him to do anything. The room was simple; a small bed posted against the wall, a closet off in a corner on the opposite wall, a dresser at the wall by the foot of the bed, and a wooden chair set next to the closet, only a few feet away from the door.

The redhead noticed this right away, and chose the chair over the bed.

The silver haired reindeer said nothing to this, and took his seat on the bed.

"I'm sure you have a lot of questions that you would like answered." the silver haired man said from where he sat on the blanketed mattress.

"Hn." Gaara said stoicly, trying his hardest not to reveal how much he was freaking out inside.

"I am sorry that it took so long for us to locate you. We had… I had," Kakashi corrected, "never expected you yourself to be reincarnated. Perhaps that's why it was so difficult to locate you. You're overall essence is the same, but your human aura smells so different…"

"Is that all you wanted to talk about." Gaara asked in a monotone, but slightly irritated that the man was avoiding the topic that was bugging him.

He sighed, closing his eyes, only to reopen them with a serious look directed at his master.

"When Sakura returned home with you, it was the happiest I have ever seen her," he started seriously.

"But?" the red haired master inquired.

"I don't think she's realized that you could refuse to take the position." he said, eyes staring intently at Gaara. "She is the most loyal of your deer, but that doesn't mean that you are as loyal to her. You are her master, and you don't have to do anything you don't want to, even if others ask it of you."

"So you want me to take into account her sensitive feelings?" Gaara asked simply.

Kakashi noded. "If you're going to refuse, please, be gentle about it. Now, do you have any questions?"

"What do you mean by reincarnated?" Gaara asked after a moment of thought.

Kakashi smiled a bit, glad that he decided to ask a question. "Reindeer do not age, but when our resolve wavers and we replace faith with doubt, we are reincarnated so that the deer may come back and do the job assigned to them. Out of all of us, Yamato and I are the oldest and have never been reincarnated, being Donner and Blitzen. After us is Neji- Prancer, Shikamaru- Comet, Ino- Vixen, Sasuke- Dasher, Naruto- Cupid, and then Sakura- Dancer, being the youngest. The more the deer are reincarnated, the younger we refer them to be."

"I thought you said Dancer was the most loyal." Gaara questioned, catching the laps in information**.**

The silver haired man sighed, a distant look overcoming his eyes. "Dancer is a difficult case. She _is_ your most loyal, there is no doubt about that, but she has been reincarnated twelve times, the most out of everyone else. However, this is not due to her losing faith."

Gaara tried to protest, not liking the contradictories of the story, but Kakashi cut him off.

"She is the only case that it has happened to, but with each instance of reincarnation, it was because of one thing…"

Gaara waited patiently for the answer.

"Dancer died."


End file.
